Internal-combustion engine



July l0, 1928.

L... E. VAN HlsE INTERNAL coMBUsToN ENGINE Filed Sept. 3, 1921 ATTORNEY.444V

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Patented July io, 192s.

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k1,676,8.1iA

LESTER E. VAN iIIsEQoE Los ANGELES', CALIFORNIA; sain van iIsE ASSIGNOE To JAMES v. EALnw-IN. l

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

Appiicatin filed september 3, 1921.` seriai no. 498,434.

This invention relates to internal combustion engines, and particularly to the fuel feed mechanism thereof.

An object of the invention is to provide a novel, simple, and effective. apparatus which will be automatic in operation and will require practically no attention to keep itoperative. l

Another object is to provide a fuel feeding apparatus in which the amount of fuel fed is in direct proportion to the speed ofv the engine.. y

A further object is to leliminate the objectionable feeding Aofv unvaporized fuel directly to the intake or to the lubricating mechanism which is necessarily inherent in feeding devices where the fuel feed d-epends upon suction exerted through a. conductor connected between a vacuum tank and the intake or the. oil pumping mechanisms `of internal combustion engines. In my invention no fuel can reach the engine except through the carburetor, since thepfuel feeding conductor begins at the vfueltank and 7 ends at the carburetor and lias .no bypass, l suction pipe, 'or connection of any kind.

which could feed fuel tothe engine or to any part thereof eXc'ept through the carburetor. A further object of my-invention is to utilize the energy ordinarily wasted and remaining in fuel'after its passage through the engine'to cause 'continuous operation of the fuel feeding mechanism.

With the above mentioned and other objects in view, the invention ,consists in the novel and useful provision, formation, con-v struction. and relative, arrangement of Y,the various parts, members and features, as illustrated in one embodiment in the accompanying drawing, described in-the followingl de-v tailed statement, and finally pointed out in claims. A

In the drawing: Figure 1 illustrates an automobile'incorporating the :improved `fluid elevating and feeding means;A

Figure 2 is a fragmentary crossl sectional Vassociated with a well member Vand .having various fluid conduits associated therewith;

' Figure 3 illustrates a modification of certain part of the fluid elevating andr feeding means. l l y Corresponding parts in all the figures are designated bythe same reference characters.

Referring now with particularity tothe drawing, A designates in its entirety and in one embodiment they fuel .elevating and feedingmeans and B designates a motor vehicle. The motor vehicle B is provided with the usual engine lwhich has an exhaust manifold 2 and carburetor 3 for feeding afluid to said engine, the 'carburetor being showny dotted. @designates a fuelsupplytank and 5 a fuel conduit joined'to said fluid supply vtank i and having incorporatedv therewith the improved elevating and feeding IneansA. .The improved means A includes in ,one embodiment a valve; member a and an energizer Z)` which-may be characterized as a pumping bottle orchamber because it is in effectV a. closed bottle j having Va tneck in which is located a single opening that provides communication with the interior thereof. The valve member a includes a housing 6 formed with spaced chambered portions 7 and 8 with a port 9 communicating with the chambered portions. A valve seatingV ineinb'er 10 is detachablyjoined to one end of the housing and a -ball member -11`is adapted to close the annular opening inthe member 10, said valvev beingvprovided witha compressionspring 12 adapted to ensure a closing.V They conduit 5' is held tothemember 10 and communicates with theannular space ofthe member 10 asV shownat` 13. The chamber 8glikewise`has a ball member 14 therein with a spring 15v bearing on, the surface thereofand the hall 14 is adapted to close tliekupper portion of the porti). It

will .thus be seen that we have 'two balllcheck valves which are .designated in their entirety as 0 and d. The valve member a likewise has a chambered portion 16 spaced above the chamber 8 with an inter-commu'nicating The ,eX-v

port 17 between saidl chambers. terior lofthe-valve member is formed with radiating vanes .18 and the vanes cover van area equal in length .tol the length of the chamber 16.k The energizer 'Z9 includes. al Ashell body 19 provided with bead or flange 2O and-,an annular neckQl. Aport 22 lcommunicates with the annulartspace .included me the'neakjand with the arterias of the. Y

body 19. i A projection 23 on the valve meinvber a is 4received Withinthe neck 21 and the port 22 is in communication With aport 24 'passing through said member 23 and in periphery 'of the manifold. As before stated,

the conduit 5k communicates with the valve member Val at one end thereof and the oppo'siteend of saidfvalve member ci is formed with a reduced portion 28 having al port 29 therein communicating with the chamber 16,

land a cap member 30` carrying a iiui'd conduit i 131 is held to theA reduced portion 28 by threading the cap thereto or by Welding or L otherwise,eso that theIannular space of the conduit 31 is in communication With the Y portee. Y I

7We may connectV the conduity 31 directly v with the carburetor 3 or We may incorporate 'in one embodiment of the inve'ntion'a, Well V'member C.' Assuming that the well member C is used, Which Well member may Acomprise a-small` tank having a cylindrical shell. 32 with a top member 33 and a base member 34 held thereto, the conduit 31 would be con- -nectedto thetop plate member 33. It is intended that the Well member C be joinedV j With-the frame of an automobile andl above the carburetor asshovvn in Figure 1. The

AWell member is provided with a conduit35 passingthrough therbase 34 and communicating with the carburetor 3, and Vis also pro-Y vided with an overflow pipe 36 Connecting fvviththe conduit 5. as' shown at 37 L' The usual vent opening and its plug 38 is incorporated f in thertop 'plate 33. V

' VThe operation of V"isa'sfollovvs: If the tank 4 is not high fenough .to induce flow of gasoline through the conduit 5 past the valve 11` and into t-he energizer 5, it will be necessary to` prime the eiiergizer Withwhatever `fuel is to be used,

such as' gasoline. A primer is shown at, e

and the primerincludes ,a priming cup 39 anda valve cut-off 40 With a. `conduit membei' 41 communicating With 'theports 9 and 24. After the device has beenV fully primed andthe yengine started, assuming of course Vthat the" carburetor has' gasoline Within its well, heated gases will be expelled from the' engine through the exhaust manifoldV and theseheated gases will heat the A`shell 19 "of the member b. Gasoline Within the member b Will then tend to expand'and also vaporize and this expansion and vaporization will cause the device just described a pressure against any gasoline tending to pass through the port l24 intothe member Z1.

The gas formed in the member b continues to expand, exerting a pressure upon the `surface of the gasoline Withinthe member Vpressure Within the member Z) and the gas Whichhas been forced therefrom. The cooling andeondensation of this gas causes a Vvacuum which has a tendency to draw more gasoline through the conduit 5 past the valve CZ and into the member Z), whereupon the cycle of operations just described Will be repeated. Obviously the vapor and the gaso-y lineforced ahead of said vapor willhavea tendency to boost and eleva-te the gasoline from the chamber 16 and through'the con- 'duit 31 to Where it Will drop `into the Well C and fill said Well. The gasoline from said Well is then fed through the conduit 35 to the carburetor 3 and said conduit 35 may of course be provided with the usual cock. If the gasolinelevel Within the Well reaches a the pipe tank 4. I .f It Will of course be understood that the starting of the apparatus requires an initial full priming so that the pump chamber 7), the passages 22 and 24, and the chamber 9 36 and beconducted back to the between the tvvo check valves l1 and 14 are filled with iiuid except for the space left above the plane in the ltop of passage`22 determined' point said fluid 'Will flow Within which provides a vapor chamber. j When thu's fully primed thev applica-tion of heat `to the pump chamber b rapidly vaporizes the fluid therein VWith the result offplacing a pressure thereon which will expel fluid uplWardl'y past the check valve 14, and this va porization kandexpulsion ofv liquid Will con-v the cooling eiiect of the incoming fluid there-y by intensifying the Vacuum. That condition necessarily provides the force for draw-y ing/into the pump chamber b afresh supply ofV fluid from the pipe 5,*and that fresh supply of `fluid is in turn vaporized and expelled in the manner 'already described. This operation repeats itselfso .as to give a distinct pulsation or pumping action that will pump 'the fluid in almost a continuous stream-into pipe'31 into a Well or container @designed A to receive the same.

In Figure 3 I have shown a modification b of the energizer band in which the enq ergizer assumes a vertical position in place of the horizontal position shown in Figure 2, ,with respect to the'exhaust manifold. y

The energizer b includes a shell 42 having a flanged extremity 43. It al-so includes the stud 26 with the nut 27 screw-threaded thereon for holdingtlie shell 42 within the exhaust manifold 2. A second shell or container 44 is received within the shell 42 and the periphery 'of said shell 44 is in spaced relation to the inner surface of the shell 42, as shown at 45. The shell 44 is provided with transverse perforations 4G and 47 for allowing communication between the inner chamber 48 of the shell 42 and the* annular space or vapor chamber 45. The stud 28 of the valve member a has a screw-threaded engagement with the -shell 44 so that the port 24 contained 4therein may communicate with the chamber 48. This is simply la modification, and theprinciple of operation, as before described, is the saine.

It will thus be seen that I have provided an elevating or boosting and feeding means which will elevate a fluid to a given height and which when used with gasoline-propelled vehicles, provides a simple and economical system for feeding the gasoline to the carburetor at a constant flow irrespective of the angle assumed by the vehicle inl its travel, and which will be reliable in all details and which will overcome the necessity of providing complicated structures and devices now generally utilized in feeding gasoline to the carburetor.

It has been found that the lower valve member el is the only valve member required to successfully operate thedevice, and that Y the member c may be eliminated. The valve d, however, should be placed as near as pos-l sible to the port 24 so that this valve may prevent any back pressure through the line 5. f

Experiment 'has likewise demonstrated` that some artificial cooling means such as incorporating water Jackets around the valve member a materially aids the oper- Y ation of the device. This water jacket'member should have connections so that water or other fluid Vmight be circulated.

It is obvious that many changes and variations `and modification-s may be made gin departure from `the particular description` and 'A showing of lthe .accompanying drawing, in 5.5

adapting the invention to varying conditions and requirementsof use and service, with-"f out departing fromr the true spirit of the invention.

Having thus disclosed my invention, I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

l. In combination with an internal 'com bustion engine having an exhaust duct and a carburetor, a source `of fuelsupply there` for, a pumpingbottle partly seated in said duct, a pipe connecting saidsource. ofl supply to said bottle, a check valve in said pipe,

a storage tank arranged adjacent said carburetor, a pipe connecting said bottle to said tank, an overflow pipe connected to the first named'pipe between said check valve and saidsource of supply, and a pipe connecting connected to said conduit Abetween said valves, andv an overflow pipe connecting said auxiliary tank with said conduit.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my Vname Vto this specification.

` i LESTER E. VAN Hisii. 

